Modern Cooking - Vegetable Couscous (New Recipe April)

I spent most of today at Lily's kindergarten party. Unfortunately, the weather was pretty bad, so all the fun had to be moved inside. Therefore, I just felt the urge to share my latest go-to comfort food: couscous! My husband bought the pre-cooked one, so it is amazingly easy and quick to cook. I love it because it provides and awesome last-minute dinner that's also nutricious and healthy!

Vegetable Couscous

Ingredients:
2 large carrots, chopped
3-4 scallions (white and green parts), chopped
5 large brown mushrooms, cut in bite-sized pieces
garlic (to taste)
2-1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup pre-cocked couscous
olive oil, freshly ground pepper, lemon jouce

Place couscous in a large bowl. Bring vegetable broth to a rolling boil, pour over couscous, and cover. Heat some olive oil in a skillet and cook garlic, carrots, and scallions until just a little bit browned but still firm. Add mushrooms and let cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add vegetables to the couscous (it will have absorbed all the liquid by now) and stir. Season with pepper and a splash of lemon juice.

Enjoy by itself or as a delicious side to chicken or steak. You can use about any vegetable you have on hand, so it is also a dish to go to to clear out the veggy compartment in your fridge.

Modern Cooking - Spanish Veggie Tortilla

Tonight was a "what are we going to cook"-kind of evening. Lily asked for eggs, potatoes, and carrots, but I didn't really feel like breakfast for dinner. But we came close to her requests, as my Spanish veggie tortilla came to mind. A Spanish tortilla is much different from Mexican tortilla and can be compared more to an omlette. I had it the first time about 8 years ago when one of my favorite teachers from college hosted a barbecue to celebrate the upcoming graduation at her home and served this dish.

Spanish Veggie Tortilla

Ingredients (for tonights tortilla):
5 small potatoes
1 large red bell pepper
1 zucchini
brown mushrooms
5 eggs
some milk
rosemary, marjoram, salt, and pepper to taste
some parmesan cheese, grated
olive oil for the pan

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Cut potatoes into small pieces and add to skillet. Cut bell pepper, zucchini, and mushrooms to bite-sized pieces and add to skillet. Cook until slightly browned; season with rosemary, marjoram, and pepper. Slightly beat eggs; add about 1/4 cup of milk, season with some salt and pepper. Pour egg mix over veggies, reduce heat to low medium and cover. Cook until egg mixture is set and firm. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, cut in wedges, and serve.


Why we love this recipe so much? Because it's versatile. You can use about any veggie you have laying around; we even have used it before to turn some left-over grilled vegetable into another dinner. You can prepare it as the main dish with a side salad or serve it as a side with steak, chicken, or at a barbecue. It's even a perfect dish to bring to a pot-luck.

Try it and let me know what you think!